1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates generally to devices and methods for delivering ingestible materials into a user's body and more particularly to mechanical devices and methods for delivering ingestible materials to a user's gastrointestinal tract through a feeding tube.
2. Background Art
In many applications, a patient may be unable to orally consume ingestible materials such as food products, nutritional supplements or medications and must be intubated with a feeding tube for delivery of such products. Intubation generally involves placing a feeding tube through the mouth or nose, beyond the esophagus, and extending to a position in the user's gastrointestinal tract, typically the stomach. Conventional feeding tubes typically include a tube inlet located outside the user's body and a tube outlet positioned inside the user's body. Ingestible materials injected into the feeding tube can be passed through the tube outlet directly to the stomach or other gastrointestinal location for consumption by the user.
In many applications, it is desirable to inject an ingestible material through a feeding tube into a user's body using a delivery device. One common application involves the use of a nasogastric feeding tube. A nasogastric feeding tube generally extends through the patient or user's nostril, nasopharynx, oropharynx, and esophagus into the user's stomach or intestine. Devices for delivering ingestible materials to a user through a nasogastric tube inlet using a plunger-driven delivery device, or syringe, are known in the art. However, such conventional plunger-driven feeding tube delivery devices include numerous moving parts that add complexity and cost to device manufacturing and packaging processes, as well as complicating use.
Another problem associated with conventional plunger-driven feeding tube delivery devices involves incomplete advancement of the ingestible material through the feeding tube. Generally, the feeding tube can have a length from about 10-100 cm, depending on the size of the patient and the particular application. When an ingestible material is injected into the feeding tube, the material must be pushed through the entire length of the feeding tube to the tube outlet inside the user's body. In some applications, a plunger-driven feeding tube delivery device is not capable of pushing the entire ingestible material volume completely through the entire length of the feeding tube using only one stroke of the plunger. Instead, using conventional devices and methods, some ingestible material may remain in the tube after the plunger has been fully depressed in a single stroke, thereby forming an occlusion in the tube and forcing the user to perform additional steps to completely evacuate the tube. Such additional steps add complexity to the process of administering ingestible material through the feeding tube. In many instances, users of conventional plunger-driven feeding tube delivery devices must disconnect the delivery device and attach a second device that includes a flushing liquid to push the remaining material through the feeding tube. Such disconnection and reconnection adds additional steps and requires that a sterile second flushing device be kept on hand at all times.
Another problem associated with conventional plunger-driven feeding tube delivery devices includes the growth and development of microorganisms in the feeding tube following delivery of the ingestible material through the tube. In some applications, the ingestible material includes chemical compounds that can promote the growth of bacteria in the interior of the tube. Conventional devices can leave ingestible material deposits on the interior wall of the tube following delivery, creating regions that support bacterial growth. Such bacterial growth can pose health risks to the user as subsequent injections into the tube will likely introduce the bacteria into the body. Additionally, in some applications, conventional syringe or plunger-driven devices do not fully evacuate the feeding tube following administration of the ingestible material, causing biofilm formation on the interior of the feeding tube. In many applications, a compressible multi-chamber delivery device for sequentially administering ingestible materials would be superior to existing conventional delivery devices with respect to the noted problems of conventional devices.
Thus, there is a continuing need in the art for improvements in feeding tube delivery devices and methods for introducing ingestible materials into a user's body through a feeding tube.